In the Tigard-Tualatin School District (TTSD), it's about "never giving up; nothing matters as much as teaching every child to read at grade level," said former district superintendent Rob Saxton, newly appointed in September 2012 as Oregon's first Deputy Superintendent of Public Instruction.1 TTSD's mission to educate every child is operationalized through a collective commitment to focused work; continuous improvement and refinement in instructional practice on a district-wide basis; and a pervasive attitude on the part of district and school personnel to ensure that all students leave TTSD able to be highly successful adults. The refusal to allow any child to fall through the proverbial cracks and, instead, to make sure all students are learning, is described as a kind of "shared relentlessness" among adults in the district.

It's important that goals are goals for all children so we can close the racial achievement gap.

- Dan Goldman, Director of Curriculum and Instruction

Begun as a log schoolhouse in 1853, TTSD is now the ninth largest district in Oregon and the fifth largest in the Portland metropolitan area, serving approximately 13,000 students in 10 elementary schools, three middle schools, two high schools, and an alternative school program. And, despite serving a large and growing number of English Language Learners, the district has made substantial progress in narrowing the achievement gap between the performance of children from underrepresented groups (e.g., minority, students with disabilities) and their typical peers. Over 50 percent of TTSD's student population is projected to be comprised of students of color by 2020.

Tigard-Tualatin School District Photos

1 The Oregon legislature recently passed major changes to the administration of the Oregon Department of Education, one of which resulted in the designation of the Governor as the Superintendent of Public Instruction, and the appointment, rather than election, of a Deputy Superintendent.

Our Partners

Council of Chief State School Officers (CCSSO)National Association of State Directors of Special Education (NASDSE)Supported by: U.S. Office of Special Education Programs

NCEO is supported primarily through Cooperative Agreements (#H326G050007, #H326G11002) with the Research to Practice Division, Office of Special Education Programs, U.S. Department of Education. Additional support for targeted projects, including those on ELL students, is provided by other federal and state agencies. The Center is affiliated with the Institute on Community Integration in the College of Education and Human Development, University of Minnesota. Opinions expressed in this publication do not necessarily reflect those of the U.S. Department of Education or Offices within it.